It is recognised that constituted community groups will have a different understanding of governance within their groups than larger charities or companies due to their local focus and limited resources.

 

By adopting a constitution, your group will become an “unincorporated association” by law. This legal status is appropriate for groups:

a) which have and will have few assets;

b) which have a membership with an executive committee to be elected  - usually annually - by members (the executive committee manage the activities of the group on behalf of its members); and

c) where the objects of the group are to be carried out wholly or partly by the members (as volunteers).

 

Being constituted offers a clear process for how the group will work , what it will do and who will do it.By adopting a constitution, a community group is making a legal document that gives information on what the group is set up to do and how it is run. The constitution is effectively the  “instruction manual”  for how the group internally functions , and externally it can be seen as evidence of its purposes and structure. It can often be the first step on the ladder towards a group becoming commissioned or contracted to provide services.

 

Being constituted will usually offer your group access to the majority of funding opportunities - but it is not the ideal legal structure if you will be employing staff or owning assets.

 

The charities commission offers a 'model constitution' that groups can use as a basis for a constitution if they do not have one;

http://www.charitycommission.gov.uk/Library/publications/pdfs/gd3textbw.pdf

 

 

Groups should still aim to follow the spirit , if not the exact detail that is laid out in 'Good governance - code for the voluntary and community sector' as laid out in the voluntary and community sector governance hub. The summary of this document can be found at

http://www.governancehub.org.uk/docs/Code%20Pocket.pdf

the full document at;

http://www.governancehub.org.uk/docs/Good%20Governance%20Code%20-%20Final.pdf

and the general site of the governanace hub that offers lots of practical information is at ;

 

http://www.governancehub.org.uk/

 

The voluntary sector legal handbook is a guide to the law as it affects charities, community groups and other voluntary organisations, including employment legislation, data protection and the Human Rights Act. It does cost £50 , but is a good source of legal information.

http://www.governancehub.org.uk/resources/The%20Board%20In%20Control/BC-Internal%20Controls/425

The alternative is that your local capacity building organisation (Usually your local Council for voluntary services) should have a copy you can gain access to.

 

Joining your local capacity building organisation as a member will usually be quite cheap (£20 approx) and it will offer you support and information on a huge range of topics from governance to fundraising. It is usually money well spent even if you have very limited resources.